Shortly before we moved from Chicago to California, the folks in my office gave me perhaps the most thoughtful gift I've ever received: a custom datapack of "official" Netrunner cards, with each card featuring some memory or inside-joke from my time at Google Chicago.

The amount of effort that went into this blows my mind. There's obviously a lot of content, but the thing that makes this so special to a Netrunner fan is all the little details. For example: * They actually printed and folded a box exactly like the real datapack boxes. The box included not only all the cards, but also an awesome story insert, just like the real thing. * All of the cards make mechanical and thematic sense; they would actually "work" in the game [though some balance fixes are desperately required]. ;-) * Many of the cards have great flavortext, often with embarrassing-but-accurate quotes from me, such as the text on Diplomat ("At a meta-level, I'm happy that you're all so passionate about this subject."), or Laser-Focused Metrics ("It's hard to find the right balance between fair and insane.")

As you can see in the last shots in this album, these cards are now proudly on display above my new desk in Mountain View. I fully expect to be looking up at them, remembering Chicago, and grinning foolishly for years to come.

My understanding is that this was a big, group effort, but I also heard from many folks that +Jacob Matthews was instrumental in making this happen. So, thanks so much to Jacob and to everyone who contributed to this gift!

My time in Chicago marked the best four years of my life. I miss you already.﻿

"This is a standard recycling program test device. You are intended to separate the bound paper part from the plastic wrapper and deposit them in the appropriate recycling container(s). Your local waste management or recycling provider will register the arrival of this test device, verifying end-to-end operation of their system."﻿

I'd like to stop by to see your collection next time in Chicago - which should be soon. I've worked in Silicon Valley for three "tours of duty" (long list), in Scottsdale (Motorola) and in Houston (Compaq) and now live in Salt Lake. ﻿

+Todd LarsenI don't know... self-driving cars will have enough cameras and internet/3G links (and no doubt some method of contacting the police) - I'd imagine you'd be violating some law and get reprimanded.﻿

Q: Wouldn't they be an even better investment if there were, like, usable buildings on the land?

A: No.

Q: You have got to be shitting me.

A: Proposition 13 makes abandoned barns an enormously lucrative investment. You see, the assessed value of a piece of property is capped at a rate well below the rate of increase in property values out here. So you can just get the price of the land reevaluated every year and take tax-free loans against the increase in equity. This is a huge amount of untaxable money. Especially if you're an abandoned shed that's worth seven figures, right smack dab in the middle of the Google campus.

Q: Right, but that's just about low taxes, right?

A: Yeah. Well. Uh. I was going to get to the "except" part.

Q: And what's that?

A: The increase is capped except upon the sale or the completion of new improvements. Like an apartment building, for instance, to partially solve the housing crisis out here. Or a new building on the Google campus. This means that if the value of the improvement is less than the compounded increase in the value of the property absent the improvement, then it doesn't make any sense to actually build anything.

A: The only way you can vandalize anything in California that solves the problem is to literally build a new improvement on the property without the landowner finding out. That resets the tax basis and gives them an incentive to stop holding the land off the market.

I've lived in half a dozen neighborhoods in Chicago, and Pert is my favorite neighborhood cleaners yet--I've been going here regularly for about six years. Anything you need, they can do, from minor alterations to cleaning your HUGE down comforter. They'll ask you when you need to pick up your items, and they've never been late for me. You rarely get customer service like this nowadays unless you're paying through the nose, and their prices are incredibly reasonable to boot.
I really can't say enough nice things about Pert--Tony and Frank are super friendly, and it's always nice to see them when I drop off and pick up my cleaning. Highly recommended if you live in the area or they're on your daily commute.

• • •

I've lived in half a dozen neighborhoods in Chicago, and Pert is my favorite neighborhood cleaners yet--I've been going here regularly for about six years. Anything you need, they can do, from minor alterations to cleaning your HUGE down comforter. They'll ask you when you need to pick up your items, and they've never been late for me. You rarely get customer service like this nowadays unless you're paying through the nose, and their prices are incredibly reasonable to boot.
I really can't say enough nice things about Pert--Tony and Frank are super friendly, and it's always nice to see them when I drop off and pick up my cleaning. Highly recommended if you live in the area or they're on your daily commute.

Keep your eye on Balsan, because it's going to be making headlines soon on the Chicago restaurant scene.
We went there for dinner and were flat out blown away by the taste and quality of every single dish that graced our table. The charcuterie and cheese plate that we started with was to die for--some of the finest melt-in-your-mouth foie gras and prosciutto, and the cheeses were exquisite. I moved on to a salad of young lettuces that I had no particular expectations of, but was sent reeling by the intense taste--the dressing was a work of art, and it took an incredible amount of restraint to not ask for a glass of it.
And on to the spare rib. Oh, the spare rib--at this point I didn't know how I'd even be able to eat it as I was already pretty full, but as soon as I took one bite, I knew I'd have no problem polishing the whole thing off. Finished off the night with a great cup of French press coffee and the pear financier. Fabulous.
Oh, and lastly, they carry a whole variety of rye whiskies, which means that they know how to make a real Manhattan, and let me tell you, it was one of the best Manhattans I've ever had. I can't wait to go back.

• • •

Keep your eye on Balsan, because it's going to be making headlines soon on the Chicago restaurant scene.
We went there for dinner and were flat out blown away by the taste and quality of every single dish that graced our table. The charcuterie and cheese plate that we started with was to die for--some of the finest melt-in-your-mouth foie gras and prosciutto, and the cheeses were exquisite. I moved on to a salad of young lettuces that I had no particular expectations of, but was sent reeling by the intense taste--the dressing was a work of art, and it took an incredible amount of restraint to not ask for a glass of it.
And on to the spare rib. Oh, the spare rib--at this point I didn't know how I'd even be able to eat it as I was already pretty full, but as soon as I took one bite, I knew I'd have no problem polishing the whole thing off. Finished off the night with a great cup of French press coffee and the pear financier. Fabulous.
Oh, and lastly, they carry a whole variety of rye whiskies, which means that they know how to make a real Manhattan, and let me tell you, it was one of the best Manhattans I've ever had. I can't wait to go back.

This is the only place I will take my knives to get sharpened. It was recommended to my by several local chefs and even an executive chef in the San Francisco Bay Area. For two years running now I've taken my knives there to get sharpened, and I've returned home with knives that I could shave with. On top of that, they've got great prices on kitchen supplies and the people are great.
If (heaven forbid) I ever move out of Chicago, I'll be mailing my knives back here to get sharpened.

• • •

This is the only place I will take my knives to get sharpened. It was recommended to my by several local chefs and even an executive chef in the San Francisco Bay Area. For two years running now I've taken my knives there to get sharpened, and I've returned home with knives that I could shave with. On top of that, they've got great prices on kitchen supplies and the people are great.
If (heaven forbid) I ever move out of Chicago, I'll be mailing my knives back here to get sharpened.

We found Stonecutters because they had a nice sample kitchen counter or two over in the Abt, so we drove by one day to check them out and talk to them about materials and finishes for counters (we needed a *lot* of countertops!). The people we talked to were super-nice, no-bullshit, but professional. They gave us a small (3"x3") sample of the exact granite and finish that we wanted (absolute black honed, which is somewhat uncommon), and when we decided it was time to get our counters, we asked them for a quote. They gave a reasonable quote, sent us to pick out the slabs we wanted, and cut our counters on their advanced computer-controlled equipment. They even cut a corner countertop for us in one piece at our request so that we wouldn't have any seams in our kitchen (mind you, that's not actually possible if you have a super-long stretch of counter, which wen didn't have).
They did a great job installing the counters--very professional, and very careful of our floors and cabinets. The counters look amazing.
Lastly, I'd like to give an example that shows how trustworthy and reputable these guys are. In total, between the kitchen and 2 bathrooms, we had *10* different pieces of granite and marble. One piece (a small 24"x37") piece of marble came with the wrong edge. No problem--they cut and prepped a new piece ASAP and Mike (one of the owners) came out to install it two days later. That piece turned out to be waaay too short (whoops!). Mike apologized, re-measured, and then came back with *another* piece. This piece came from part of the marble slab that had some weird swirls in it that we didn't want. No questions asked, no arguments--they said that if we didn't want it, they'd re-do it. Well, they re-did it with no complaining and they made it right.
Sure it was a bit of an inconvenience, but never did I think "hey, these guys are just going to leave me hanging". An upstanding company and I'd gladly do business with them again.

• • •

We found Stonecutters because they had a nice sample kitchen counter or two over in the Abt, so we drove by one day to check them out and talk to them about materials and finishes for counters (we needed a *lot* of countertops!). The people we talked to were super-nice, no-bullshit, but professional. They gave us a small (3"x3") sample of the exact granite and finish that we wanted (absolute black honed, which is somewhat uncommon), and when we decided it was time to get our counters, we asked them for a quote. They gave a reasonable quote, sent us to pick out the slabs we wanted, and cut our counters on their advanced computer-controlled equipment. They even cut a corner countertop for us in one piece at our request so that we wouldn't have any seams in our kitchen (mind you, that's not actually possible if you have a super-long stretch of counter, which wen didn't have).
They did a great job installing the counters--very professional, and very careful of our floors and cabinets. The counters look amazing.
Lastly, I'd like to give an example that shows how trustworthy and reputable these guys are. In total, between the kitchen and 2 bathrooms, we had *10* different pieces of granite and marble. One piece (a small 24"x37") piece of marble came with the wrong edge. No problem--they cut and prepped a new piece ASAP and Mike (one of the owners) came out to install it two days later. That piece turned out to be waaay too short (whoops!). Mike apologized, re-measured, and then came back with *another* piece. This piece came from part of the marble slab that had some weird swirls in it that we didn't want. No questions asked, no arguments--they said that if we didn't want it, they'd re-do it. Well, they re-did it with no complaining and they made it right.
Sure it was a bit of an inconvenience, but never did I think "hey, these guys are just going to leave me hanging". An upstanding company and I'd gladly do business with them again.

I've been going to D/Vision for over three years now, and I couldn't be happier with them--I've referred over a half dozen of my friends from the office and they've all come away happy customers (with cool glasses :-). Ezra is very helpful and thorough, and most importantly, takes the time to explain everything he discovers from your exam--most eye doctors are in a big hurry to push you out the door and railroad their next patient in, but not Ezra.
In the front of the house, folks are extremely friendly, and very customer-oriented. Chris has taken the time to show me dozens and dozens of frames--always patient, and always willing to give his opinion and not just tell me what I want to hear (and believe me, for someone as fashion-retarded as I am, that's really appreciated). Lastly, they take my vision insurance (VSP) and that's really the icing on the cake, because some of the really fancy frames can get a little pricey--not that they're cheaper anywhere else--it's just the nature of the beast.
Anyway, it's a great business, and I hope to keep going there for my exams and glasses (my wife is a customer too!) for years to come. Even though I don't live anywhere near the office, I gladly hop off the Blue line at Division for the two block walk over to their office.

• • •

I've been going to D/Vision for over three years now, and I couldn't be happier with them--I've referred over a half dozen of my friends from the office and they've all come away happy customers (with cool glasses :-). Ezra is very helpful and thorough, and most importantly, takes the time to explain everything he discovers from your exam--most eye doctors are in a big hurry to push you out the door and railroad their next patient in, but not Ezra.
In the front of the house, folks are extremely friendly, and very customer-oriented. Chris has taken the time to show me dozens and dozens of frames--always patient, and always willing to give his opinion and not just tell me what I want to hear (and believe me, for someone as fashion-retarded as I am, that's really appreciated). Lastly, they take my vision insurance (VSP) and that's really the icing on the cake, because some of the really fancy frames can get a little pricey--not that they're cheaper anywhere else--it's just the nature of the beast.
Anyway, it's a great business, and I hope to keep going there for my exams and glasses (my wife is a customer too!) for years to come. Even though I don't live anywhere near the office, I gladly hop off the Blue line at Division for the two block walk over to their office.

Abt is like Disneyland for adults. Imagine a Costco that sells nothing but stoves, ranges, ovens, fridges, range hoods, whole kitchens, grills, ipods, hundreds of TVs, wine fridges, and even entire home theaters. It's really awesome.
Abt knows customer service. Period. Two years ago we bought a washer and dryer from them. My mom bought an HDTV from them this summer. Today I bought an HDTV plus wall mount from them. We're re-doing our kitchen soon and have been there probably 4 times in the last year. Everytime I've been there, I've encountered polite, kind, and helpful salespeople who have made it a breeze for me to spend money. And while their prices aren't the lowest around, they've always done a great job of either beating or coming very close to prices from their competitors.
Either way, their customer service is what brings me back time and time again. Take today for example: We bought the TV and the mount--paid with a credit card, got our receipt and our salesman directed us over to merchandise pickup to get our goods. He recommended that we swing across the atrium to get a hot chocolate chip cookie and a cup of coffee on the way and assured us that our stuff would be ready when we got to the pickup counter. Sure enough, it was. They even waited while I brought the car around and loaded it into the car for me!
It's really a pleasure to do business with a company that has such great service.

• • •

Abt is like Disneyland for adults. Imagine a Costco that sells nothing but stoves, ranges, ovens, fridges, range hoods, whole kitchens, grills, ipods, hundreds of TVs, wine fridges, and even entire home theaters. It's really awesome.
Abt knows customer service. Period. Two years ago we bought a washer and dryer from them. My mom bought an HDTV from them this summer. Today I bought an HDTV plus wall mount from them. We're re-doing our kitchen soon and have been there probably 4 times in the last year. Everytime I've been there, I've encountered polite, kind, and helpful salespeople who have made it a breeze for me to spend money. And while their prices aren't the lowest around, they've always done a great job of either beating or coming very close to prices from their competitors.
Either way, their customer service is what brings me back time and time again. Take today for example: We bought the TV and the mount--paid with a credit card, got our receipt and our salesman directed us over to merchandise pickup to get our goods. He recommended that we swing across the atrium to get a hot chocolate chip cookie and a cup of coffee on the way and assured us that our stuff would be ready when we got to the pickup counter. Sure enough, it was. They even waited while I brought the car around and loaded it into the car for me!
It's really a pleasure to do business with a company that has such great service.